The UN passes a resolution to regulate AI and protect human rights

The UN Human Rights Council passed a resolution on Friday calling on the international community to take protective and surveillance measures with regard to artificial intelligence.

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The resolution, jointly tabled by South Korea, Austria, Brazil, Denmark, Morocco and Singapore, was adopted by consensus.

China and India, however, said they disagreed with the consensus but did not call a vote, a common practice when countries are unhappy with a solution but don’t want to spoil the party.

Beijing argued that the text contained “controversial” elements, without giving details.

The resolution calls for promoting the “transparency” of AI systems and ensuring that data intended for this technology is “collected, used, shared, archived and deleted in a manner that complies with human rights”.

The council has previously looked at emerging technologies as a whole, but this is the first time it has looked in depth at the development of AI.

This resolution stresses the importance of “guaranteeing, promoting and protecting human rights throughout the life cycle of artificial intelligence systems,” argued South Korean Ambassador Yun Seong-deok, while his US counterpart Michèle Taylor endorsed the resolution for a “step” kept forward” for the council.

For his part, Belgian Ambassador Marc Pecsteen of Buytswerve stressed on behalf of the European Union: “We are completely unanimous if this resolution highlights, among other things, the need for safeguards, due diligence and human oversight in relation to AI.” Calls for a “cautious approach” to ensure human rights are protected and respected in a world of rapid technological development.

AI systems are technically extremely complex and both fascinating and unsettling. While they can save lives by enabling a quantum leap in medical diagnosis, they are also being exploited by authoritarian regimes for mass surveillance of citizens.

Representatives of the United Nations, as well as leaders and experts, have repeatedly called for rules to be set so that these new technologies do not endanger humanity.

British Ambassador Simon Manley called for the introduction of “safeguards” on Friday, stressing that his country is hosting an AI summit in the autumn “to reach agreement on security measures to assess and address significant risks related to the latest developments.” monitor”. .

“We are deeply concerned about the use of technology to limit human rights,” including through invasions of “privacy,” he said.